"Shot by Both Sides" is a song written by

Howard Devoto Howard Devoto (born Howard Andrew Trafford, 15 March 1952) is a retired English singer and songwriter, who began his career as the frontman for punk rock band Buzzcocks, but then left to form Magazine, one of the first post-punk bands. After ...

and

Pete Shelley Pete Shelley (born Peter Campbell McNeish; 17 April 1955 – 6 December 2018) was an English singer, songwriter and guitarist. He formed early punk band Buzzcocks with Howard Devoto in 1976, and became the lead singer and guitarist in 1977 wh ...

, and performed by the English

post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of punk music that emerged in the late 1970s as musicians departed from punk's traditional elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a variety of avant-garde sensibilities and non-r ...

band Magazine. It was released in January 1978 as the band's first single, reaching No. 41 on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

and appearing, a few months later, on their debut album ''

Real Life Real life is a phrase used originally in literature to distinguish between the real world and fictional, virtual or idealized worlds, and in acting to distinguish between actors and the characters they portray. It has become a popular term on the ...

''. The song has been cited as a seminal work of the

genre, as well as a

pop punk Pop punk (or punk pop) is a rock music genre that combines elements of punk rock with power pop or pop. It is defined for its emphasis on classic pop songcraft, as well as adolescent and anti- suburbia themes, and is distinguished from other p ...

and new wave song. By the time of the single's recording, Magazine consisted of only four members, as original keyboardist Bob Dickinson had left the band the previous year. The cover artwork was designed by

Malcolm Garrett Malcolm Leslie Garrett (born 1956) is a British graphic designer, and Creative Director of Images&Co, a communications design consultancy based in London, UK. He is Ambassador for Manchester School of Art and co-founder of the annual Design Ma ...

, based on the 1886 work ''La Chimere regarda avec effroi toutes choses'' by Symbolist artist

Odilon Redon Odilon Redon (born Bertrand Redon; ; 20 April 18406 July 1916) was a French symbolist painter, printmaker, draughtsman and pastellist. Early in his career, both before and after fighting in the Franco-Prussian War, he worked almost exclusivel ...

(1840–1916).

Song

The name of the song came from a political argument between Devoto and his girlfriend, in which his girlfriend said to him; "Oh, you'll end up shot by both sides". The song originated in a riff that

came up with when Devoto was helping him with "some tentative

Buzzcocks Buzzcocks are an English punk rock band formed in Bolton, England in 1976 by singer-songwriter-guitarist Pete Shelley and singer-songwriter Howard Devoto. They are regarded as a seminal influence on the Manchester music scene, the independe ...

songs. He played the chord sequence and I was really impressed, said so, and he just gave them to me there and then." An identical guitar riff was used in the song "Lipstick" by Devoto's former band Buzzcocks, released as a

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record company ...

in November 1978, for which Devoto received a co-writing credit.

Reception

The song was ranked at No. 9 among the top "Tracks of the Year" for 1978 by ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...

''.

Cover versions

Swedish

punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...

band

No Fun at All No Fun at All (often abbreviated to just NFAA) is a Swedish punk rock band. History The band formed in the summer of 1991 in Skinnskatteberg. The group initially consisted of Mikael Danielsson (guitar), Jimmie Olsson (vocals, drums) and Henri ...

covered the song on their album ''EP's Going Steady''. "Shot by Both Sides" was also covered by Dublin band Into Paradise, UK82 punk band

English Dogs English Dogs were a British hardcore punk band that began life in the early eighties. Two versions of the band exist, the punk and metal crossover band featuring original drummer Andrew "Pinch" Pinching and second-era members Graham "Gizz" But ...

, French punk rockers Les Cadavres and Finnish punk band Kollaa Kestää (in Finnish as "Syksy"). "Shot by Both Sides" has been played live by several artists, including Radiohead (whose song "

Just Just or JUST may refer to: __NOTOC__ People * Just (surname) * Just (given name) Arts and entertainment * ''Just'', a 1998 album by Dave Lindholm * "Just" (song), a song by Radiohead * "Just", a song from the album ''Lost and Found'' by Mudvayne ...

" contains a similar guitar riff),

Mansun Mansun were an English alternative rock band, formed in Chester in 1995. The band comprised vocalist/rhythm guitarist Paul Draper, bassist Stove King, lead guitarist/backing vocalist Dominic Chad, and drummer Andie Rathbone. It was annou ...

, and

Jarvis Cocker Jarvis Branson Cocker (born 19 September 1963) is an English musician and radio presenter. As the founder, frontman, lyricist and only consistent member of the band Pulp, he became a figurehead of the Britpop genre of the mid-1990s. Following ...

Personnel

– vocals *

John McGeoch John Alexander McGeoch (25 August 1955 – 4 March 2004) was a Scottish musician and songwriter. He is best known as the guitarist of the rock bands Magazine (1977-1980) and Siouxsie and the Banshees (1980-1982). He has been described as one o ...

– guitar *

Barry Adamson Barry Adamson (born 11 June 1958)Biography
. Barryadamson.com. is an English pop and rock music ...

– bass *

Martin Jackson Martin Jackson (born 30 August 1955 in Manchester, England) is a British drummer who has played with several bands from Manchester, although his most successful roles were with Magazine in 1978 with the release of the influential ''Real Life'' ...

– drums

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shot By Both Sides 1978 debut singles Magazine (band) songs Songs written by Pete Shelley Songs written by Howard Devoto 1978 songs Virgin Records singles